Hands up anyone who thought 2020 can just go and do one! Well, it has now. So many big changes are promised over the coming few weeks and months. It’s hardly possible to contain our excitement. Hang in there, January and February will be over before we know it. As perky yellow daffodils rise from the cold ground, so will the sun sparkle, and the wheels of industry collect momentum with more gusto than they have for a long while. Hopefully by Easter new habits and routines will have formed, maybe even the end of enforced homeworking, so once again we can go out, meet new clients and old friends alike.
The telephone has always been important to business, but during the past year, its role has been bigger than ever. So how better to fill the cold space between now and Spring but to get those index fingers working to fill our diaries with sales leads that help lay the foundations for an absolutely MAHOOSIVE 2021.
Happy New Sales Lead
A good place to start is with your data. Eyeball your list of prospect companies in helicopter view and pick 3 or 4 sectors that you feel especially excited by right now. Ask yourself, where do you want to see more sales leads, why are those companies attractive, what can you do to help them reach their goals. Make a list of the reasons why those targets are worthwhile and don’t stop until you feel genuinely motivated to get your business in front of the decision makers of those organisations.
Give your sales pitch a workout
With the best will in the world, most of us come back from the Christmas break feeling a little rusty. January is a great time to give our brains as well as our bodies a workout, especially if we need to build a good pipeline of sales leads. Go to your company website and find 10 things you haven’t spoken about for a while, and build them into your repertoire. List out 10 features of your products or services and use the words ‘which means’ to link the benefit buyers get from using them. Take a look at some competitor websites and list 10 things your business does better. Like all muscle workouts, the more it hurts the better works.
Stick with the regime
Consistent sales lead generation takes systematic routines. That sounds more onerous than it is. Basically call 6 people every day, or 4, or 2 whatever the number, set yourself a target that you’re happy with and keep dialling until you reach the goal. When you get through, make sure you have a proper two-way conversation that is guided by what your prospect tells you. In other words, ask a relevant open question and listen to their response. The better your question, the more they’ll talk. The substance of that talk should tell you what you must put on the table next in order to keep their interest, and eventually generate your sales lead. Do this over and over again until you reach your daily target throughout January and February. That’s going to take some discipline but we absolutely promise it’s worth the pain.
If motivation is your issue, productivity coach Karen Eyre-White has some rational advice for finding your motivation and being productive while working from home. She explains that while there’s not a one size fits all method to staying on track, people generally fall into two work from home categories: the introvert, and the extroverts, and knowing which one you are could help your productivity. She tells Cosmopolitan magazine, “If you’re an extrovert, Karen recommends pairing up with a colleague and having a short phone call at the beginning of each day. Tell each other what you’re aiming to do that day, and then have another short call at the end of the day. Not only will this give you social connection, which is important, but keeping commitments you’ve made to someone else will also keep you accountable.” She recommends that introverts do the same using messenger based chats, or phone, regularly checking in with people but not having extended conversations if that works better for you.